Obama: No Relief On Gas Prices

U.S. President Barack Obama said that gas prices would remain high for the foreseeable future and that there’s “not much we can do” to bring them down.

“Gas prices? They’re going to still fluctuate until we can start making these broader changes, and that’s going to take a couple of years,” Obama said during a campaign stop at a wind turbine plant in the swing state of Pennsylvania.

Wait … Obama’s campaigning already? Yup.

“If you’re complaining about the price of gas and you’re only getting 8 miles a gallon … you might want to think about a trade-in,” Obama told one worker.

So in other words, your options for dealing with the pain at the pump are limited to a) waiting and b) buying a new car.

Nationwide, gas prices are now averaging $3.70 per gallon, according to AAA. That’s up more than fifty cents from February. Gas was less than $2.00 per gallon when Obama took office.

Last month, Obama responded to criticism from Sarah Palin and others regarding his energy policies by pointing to data released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That data showed increased domestic oil production in 2009 and 2010.

“Any notion that my administration has shut down oil production might make for a good political sound bite, but it doesn’t match up with reality,” Obama said. “We are encouraging offshore exploration and production.”

Critics pounced, arguing that Obama was taking credit for the result of policies implemented during the administration of former president George W. Bush. They also noted that Obama’s ban on offshore drilling and refusal to ramp up exploration efforts will result in domestic production dropoffs in 2011 and 2012.